is R.A. fatal

Question  im a 41yr old female with R.A.its been 7 yrs,i now have it full blown in all joints,feet, ankels,knees,hips,back,shoulders,elbows,neck,wrist,and hands,also in jaw,im on celebrex,shots from my dr,waiting to see a specialist i have alot of fears as to different medications and there side affects,is it to late to start these meds,or maybe i shouldnt even start them, and most of all i would like the truth,is R.A. FATAL.
 
Answer  I hope you get to see a rheumatologist soon. Treatment of rheumatoid arthritis has improved dramatically in recent years and there is lots of reason to be optimistic. While it is better if you start treatment early, there are studies to show that treatment is effective and useful even when starting later in the course. It is also true that there are studies to show that RA patients have an increased mortality (death rate) compared to those without RA, however there is recent evidence now that effective treatment reverses this.

Last update: 11:05 AM Thursday, April 26, 2007

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